Labor jobs con laid bare as Toowoomba youth unemployment spikes

Toowoomba youth lose 100 jobs in last year under do-nothing Labor government

Youth unemployment in Toowoomba now sits at 10.1 per cent after 2.2 per cent rise

Queensland leads the nation in youth job losses with 13 out of 19 regions going backwards

The extent of Labor’s jobs crisis has been laid bare, with new figures showing more than 100 youth jobs slashed from the Toowoomba jobs market in the last year.

Liberal National Party Shadow Treasurer Scott Emerson said Toowoomba’s youth unemployment rate now sat at 10.1 per cent after a 2.2 per cent rise over the last 12 months under the Palaszczuk Government.

“It’s scary when you think one in ten young people in Toowoomba want a job but can’t get one,” Mr Emerson said.

“Queensland is leading the nation for all the wrong reasons under Labor, with youth jobs disappearing from 13 out of 19 regions in Queensland last year, while a total of 11,200 youth jobs disappeared from the state in the last 12 months.

“These facts irrefutably show Labor’s ‘jobs budget’ is nothing more than a con job and Queensland is being held back by a do-nothing government.”

Mr Emerson said the LNP’s Get Queensland Working program would reverse Labor’s youth jobs trend by reducing the cost of working for young apprentices and offering financial incentives for businesses which train and retain staff.

“Unlike Labor, with a jobs program that has produced only a fraction of the jobs needed in Toowoomba, the LNP has consulted with industry and developed a real plan that will create jobs today,” Mr Emerson said.

“The LNP’s $100 million Get Queensland Working will create up to 20,000 jobs for young Queenslanders through financial incentives for businesses which take on young apprentices and vouchers for young tradies to buy their tools whether they’re a hairdresser, a carpenter or a pastry chef.

“This is about reducing the cost of working for young apprentices and incentivising businesses to train and retain young staff.

“Only an LNP Government will create jobs across Queensland, deliver the vital infrastructure projects Toowoomba needs, and Build a Better Queensland.”